Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1887-05-28
NEW YORK. NAV 21.

NEW YORK. MAY 27.
The largest FIRE that has taken place in this
city for many years broke out at l.30P. NJ.
Friday in the car stables of the Belt Line
Horse Railroad, on the west side of 10th ave-
nue.. between sd and 54th streets. The car
stables, with all their contents, were com
pieteiy destroyed. Over fourteen hundred
horses perished in the flames. One hundred
and thirty cars and large quantity of hsr-
nesses, feed and other material were burned
Only forty horses were saved ont of the fif
teen hundred that were in the stables. The
stables occupied the whole front on the west
sioe OF 10Th avenue, and extended down SD
and 54th streets, half way to Eleventh ave.
nue..
The building was three stories high. The
nre was discovered in the cellar ip the ex.
treme western end of the stables, and spread
so rapidly that it was impossible to enter the
building to save the horses. When the fire.
men arrived the whole building was in flames
and the heat was SO intense that the fremen
could not approach close enough to be of any
service to save the premises from destruction.
The heat set fire to a row OF frame tenemenrs
and stables on the south side of SD street,
and 10 few minutes the whole row was
blazing.
Then the flames leaped across 54th street
ana set ire to the six story silk factory of
Jacobs new building, which extends through
to Doth street. row of fats and tenement
houses east of the silk factory next took fire,
and the flames spread SO rapidly tn At the ten
ants had barely time to escape with their
lives In some cases fremen were CON-
PEELED to tear down back fences to enable the
tenants to escape, as IT was impossible for
| them to leave by the front doors on account
of the.h Th G,,o
on the northwest corner OF 54tn street and
10Th avenue, was next destroyed. A row OF
frame buildings. eight in all, and from two to
three stories high on the east side of 10th
avenue, were the next to be licked up by the
flames.
The first alarm was sent out by watch
man in the Car stables, and this was soon fol-
lowed by the "three skies" signal, which
brought engines from every part OF the city.
The tremen did their utmost to stay the
flames which were assuming alarming pro-
portions, and at one time it looked as if they
would battle the efforts of the whole fire de-
psrtment Fortunately the western wall Of
the stable was an unusually thick one, es-
| pecially for the purpose of resisting fire.
This stayed the fire from extending beyond
the stable TO Eleventh avenue. 1t was i'm
possible to pass through either SD or 54th
streets in line with the fire, and the firemen
made their stand in the rear of the buildings
on fire to prevent the flames from extending
to 55th and 52d streets.
The buildings destroyed besides the car
stables and silk factory, are row of apart
ment houses on oath street, and the frame
building on SD street and on 10th avenue.
The entire equipment of the Belt Line road
is destroyed, and the loss of the company
will reach $500, 900. The other losses cannot
be computed, but the value of the other prop
erty destroyed will amount to about as much
more.
When the fire broke out, the entire stock
of horses owned by the railroad company,
both sick and well, nearly fifteen hundred in
all, were in their stalls on the second and
third floors of the building. The employees
of the company who were about the building,
made desperate efforts to release them so that
they might be driven into the street, but the
rapid spread of the flames prevented this.
| The watchmen ran up the runway, and in the
few moments time that they had, released
and drove into the street about forty OF the
frightened animals, anc then they were com
pc lied to abandon the rest to their fate and
fly for their lives.
There were one hundred and thirty cars on
the lower floor. the entire equipment OF the
road. These with all the harnesses and an
| immense amount OF nay anu lttu, "Slc uc-
stroyed.
The fire on the north side of SD street
stopped at the western walls of the stable.
All the buildings on the south side of the
street opposite the stables were destroyed.
! These consisted of small wooden buildings
occupied by poor families, who were with
great difficulty driven into the street in time
to save their lives. The streets around the
neighborhood were blocked with household
goods, which the tenants of the burned dwell
lings had succeeded in carrying into the
street when they fed. Homeless people
stood around guarding these goods and be-
moaning their losses.
ON the north side of 54th street all of the
buildings, which were the tenant houses from
three to five stories high, were destroyed
All the inhabitants of these escaped. On the
south side of 54th street the fire did not ex-
tend beyond the western walls of the stables,
but tenants in the buildings for some dis
tance further up msved out Family after
family were driven from their homes as the
| fire extended.
The fire was under control at four o'clock,
and wholly extinguished before six Later
estimates show that the losses by the fire will
not be covered by Sl,000,o00.
Losses as nearly as they can be figured
/, down upon the survey of the field, foot up as
| follows: Railroad staDIes, Sooo,OVoi iout-
teen hundred horses, $3.50, 900; one hundred
and sevent, five cars, SlS0,0O0; harnesses,
s75. 900; feed, s25 900; loss to railroad COM
pany, 81, ,0S0, 900.
Jacob Hews' silk factory on 54th street,
loss 500 900: FIVE tenements on 5+th street,
800 600: losses of tenants, SAC, 900; losses
on Tenth avenue. frame building, $4,000;
Shantyville losses, $4,000; total loss by flre
| 81, ,345. 900
| twas not possible to ascertain the amount
of insurance on the property destroyed. The
nractice of the company was TO insure to
ahout one third of the value Of its property,
which would bring the amount recoverable
from more than sixty insurance companies
up to about s350,0oo. .-.
It il said that Jacob Hews' insurance on
his silk factory will reach about SIS 900 and
risks on ement property about equals the
.mount. making a total of half million dol
lars and dead loss of property amounting
to over 100000. T..
A bos,ler employed at the stables, who, 1t
wss stated, went in to rescue some horses
when the fire broke out, has not since oeen
seen. , a., ;.;,;.x
!. slso ssid to have died from the shock, out
nothing definite could be learned in regard TO
her.
Republican Victory.
| NORFOLK, Va, May q.